I'd Lie
by itzalliballi
Summary: It's Meredith's senior prom, and she's going with her best friend- who she is completely in love with. Is she finally going to admit it? Song by Taylor Swift. MerMark with bits of Alex/Iz. Complete!
1. Chapter 1

I can't believe I'm doing this. I can't believe I'm going to my senior prom. I'm going to kill him. Who ever told him that this night was vital in a teenagers life had to be on some kind of trip. Seriously. Prom. Poofy dresses. Hairspray infested hair. Pounds of makeup that weigh more than I do. And on top of that. It is a dance! What is so fun about dancing with a bunch of people that you can't wait till the day you'll never see again? He is so going to buy me 1000 gallons of Ben & Jerry's Strawberry Cheesecake ice cream for this. I hope he knows that, hopefully he's been saving. Instead of buying a tux. Doesn't he know that I would be so much happier if we just hung out- alone? Then again, I guess I should be happy to see him after he failed to come home last weekend. I don't particularly see what's so interesting about college either, but you know, that may be just the jealous side of me talking. I used to see him everyday until this year.

Lucky for me, he decided to stay in state, and the college is only an hour or so away from here. Probably my fault. Sometimes I feel bad for making him feel guilty about wanting to go elsewhere, but I just can't imagine not being driving distance from him. And Yes, there have been times that I've made the drive to see him. Of course, these were important and vital visits. Life changing even. Sure I missed several days of school due to those, but who didn't skip a lot their senior year? Next year. Next year all depends on him. I got accepted to all three schools of my choice, one being the one he attends. I'm scared to ask him though, because I'm scared he's going to tell me he doesn't want me there.

"Meredith? Meredith!" Oops. I offer a faint smile to my best friend, other than him. Izzie Stevens. One of the very few people in this town that I can stand. Truthfully, I don't know what I would do without her. I mean he is great and all, amazing even, but sometimes it's nice to just stretch back on the couch and not care if you really just ate that ENTIRE bucket of ice cream. Not that it really stops me from doing it with Mark, but the thought does cross my mind. Izzie, on the other hand, we often have contests who can eat the most without getting brain freeze. Of course, we end up in the workout room in my basement the next day, but that's not the point. The point is that we do it, and it simply doesn't matter.

"Sorry Iz." I grin as I refocus my attention to the mirror. "Why am I doing this again?" The joys of full length mirrors is that I can see myself, and most of the rest of the room in it. I can even see her roll her eyes at me. Sometimes I wonder if I spend too much time with her, but if I do, oh well.

"Have you been listening to me at all, Mer? I'm going to prom with Alex! Alex Karev!" Izzie beams, and I'm happy for her. I've been waiting for them two to get together for as long as I've known Alex. What better place, despite how cliche it might be, than prom. Mark didn't even, really, ask me to prom. He just informed me I was going- with him. Romantic, huh? Too bad I'm like his little sister. Any guy that says that is just trying to politely tell you that the thought of you naked repulses him. Don't I just feel so pretty?

"You and Alex. Got it, Iz. Just don't see why we are going to prom." Well, that's a lie. I know why she's going. She's in the court for Prom Queen. She's like our high school sweetheart. Sometimes I wonder how we're friends. But it works. She lets me pretend I'm not in love with him, and I let her crash in my bed when things get bad at home, oh and talk about Alex. It works.

"Because you can't say no to your boy toy, and I won't say no to Alex." Sadly, but surely, it's true. So I don't bother to argue. I'd find a way to give him the moon if he ever wanted it. Simply because I know he would do the same for me.

"You look pretty, Iz." That's true too. Izzie always looks pretty. It's almost kind of aggravating. She's not even one of those girls that believe in wearing a lot of make up. She's just naturally pretty. Even I like to wear eye liner and a little bit of blush. And she wonders why most girls hate her.

"I already have a date. Sorry." She laughs as she reaches for her dress that's lying on my bed. "Guess we should put them on now, huh?" She's mocking me! Does she not realize how nervous I am! I am going to PROM with HIM!! He didn't even take a date to his prom, he said he wanted to not be tied down. Yet somehow when I gave him that excuse this year, he rolled his eyes at me and told me to get over it. Something about there was no way he was going to let some drunk idiot try to grope me in the closet of some post prom party. Sometimes I wonder what exactly he did after his prom. But the realization that I really didn't want to know at all always beat out the impulse to ask. He didn't offer, and I'm not complaining.

"Last chance for a stomach bug, Stevens." I ignore the question, as well as my dad's, scratch that, step dads voice calling for us from downstairs. Richard is a nice guy and all, but it's just so weird to call him dad. Even though I have slipped up a few times, and his face inevitably turned a shade paler than mine, which is saying a lot considering he's not white. So, needless to say, stepdad it is.

"Come on, Mer! It won't be that bad." She winks at me before rushing out of my room into the joining bathroom. Why does she get the bathroom? What if I wanted the bathroom? I don't, but I could!

"Meredith! You're friend is here!" Richard's voice overpowers my stereo, and I have to stop myself from squealing. Just because I didn't want to go to prom doesn't mean I don't want to see him. How pathetic is it that I'm pretty sure even Richard knows how in love with him I am. Not that I will EVER admit that out loud. Not even to Izzie. Well except when tequila is involved, in that case, all bets are off as far as denial goes. I do love my tequila. It's not my fault he's been my next door neighbor my entire life. He was even my first kiss. But no one knows that. And I'm not sure it really counts. I was five and playing on the swing. We jumped off of them, and I landed on him. Even then I knew what to do in those scenarios. Ha. He gets his skills from me. He turned beet red. It was fantastic. I acted like it was on accident, of course, and it's never been brought up again. But as far as I'm concerned, he will always be my first kiss. Even though everyone else thinks it was Jackson Emeralds. Even Izzie. It's my secret. Well ours, really, but I don't even think he remembers that. We've never talked about it, and it is totally something he would rub in my face every chance he got.

"Just a second!" I yell back as I quickly snatch the dress from the door of my closet where it'd been hanging for three days, when I bought it. Izzie thinks I'm crazy for not getting it fitted, but what's the point? I'm never going to wear it again, anyway.

As soon as the dress falls into position, which is still only mid-thigh, my door opens, revealing him in a completely black suit with a pink bootineer- that somehow seems to match my dress, which is strange considering I didn't tell him what color it was. It even looks like he got a hair cut. His hair is gelled just enough to control the fuzzies, but not enough to spike it. Sometimes I wonder if he can read my mind. It's like he knows just what to do to make me go weak in the knees. Good thing I don't have my heels on yet. This could be fatal.

"Ever heard of knocking pre-vert?" I laugh slightly as I run my hands along my sides to make sure that the dress isn't somehow stuck somewhere, offering him a view to something completely humiliating on my part.

I blush slightly as his eyes traveling up one side of my body, following the curves of my skin, and down the other, before he finally stabled them to meet my eyes. "You look.. Mer.. You look amazing." He smiles in awe of me, and it takes every ounce of strength in me not to faint right here. He told ME I looked AMAZING! ME! I am so taking Izzie to the spa for doing my hair and makeup. Seriously. Before I can muster up an appropriate response that didn't revolve around sex or a heavy make out session, he has his arms wrapped tightly around me, bringing me off the ground into a hug, my arms wrapping around his neck instantly. God, he smells good.

Once he's let me down, and released his grasp on me, my brain returns to functional processes. "You don't look too bad yourself, Johnny."

"MER!" Izzie breaks the spell he has over me as my eyes leave his. "I NEED YOUR HELP!" Izzie opens the door, peaking her head through for me, and I watch in slight amusement as her cheeks redden at the sight of him. " Oh. Nice suit. Very Cash of you." She grins, and I can't help but laugh.

"Told you!" I turn to him in proud glory with a smirk on my face.

"Hey Isobel." He rolls his eyes at her before turning his attention to me. "She totally heard you."

"Heard what?" Izzie asks, obviously more interested in us than whatever caused her to call out my name in partial hysteria only moments before.

"I called him Johnny." I smile as I fight the urge to place my hands on my hips.

"That's because he does. I mean what is he trying to do? Find the burning ring of fire?" Izzie bit her lip as she dared to glance at him.

"Maybe he just wants to be called Sue." I counter back as I walk towards him, wrapping my arms around his waist. "It's okay, I'd still love ya if you were named Sue." By now, his face is a scarlet red, so I have to bite back my laugh as I kiss his cheek. "You look nice. Promise."

"I still need your help, Mer." Izzie broke up our embrace again, and I can't help but to send her a death glare, indicating that this better be be damn important. "Just to zip up my dress." She smiled at me, probably dying of laughter. I'm glad she finds this so amusing. We'll see how much she likes being picked on when Alex gets here. Payback is a bitch, or so they say.


	2. Chapter 2

Thanks for the reviews!

**I don't think that passenger seat has ever looked this good to me  
He tells me about his night And I count the colors in his eyes  
He'd never fall in love he swears, as he runs his fingers through his hair  
I'm laughing 'cause I hope he's wrong and I don't think it ever crossed his mind  
He tells a joke, I fake a smile That I know all his favorite songs **

It's nearly an hour later when he helps me into his Hummer. Why he has it? I have no idea. He keeps it at home when he's at college. At least he knows not to drive it long distances. "I can get in by myself, you know?" I remark, even though I'm not sure if it's true. He doesn't know that.

"Sure you can." He chuckles as he eyes my heels. "Whatever helps you not fall." I turn my head around to him once I'm safely inside the car, glaring at him as best I can without smiling.

"Watch it mister. You have to deal with me the whole night." The smile I was fighting to hide breaks through as he shakes his head at me before shutting the door. I look in the side view mirror at Alex's car behind us. I don't know why they didn't just ride with us, but I figure it has something to do with the end of the night. Ha. Izzie thinks shes soo clever. She's not.

"Ready?" He spoke the word, but we both knew at this point, I don't really have a choice. Not that I ever did, apparently. I was already in his car, and it'd already been started.

"As ever." I respond as he pulls out of my driveway. I should be happy. This is my dream. For as long as I can remember, he is who I wanted to go to prom with, you know, if I ever decided I wanted to go.

"Smile!" He smiles at me, grabbing onto my hand quickly to give it a squeeze before letting it go to replace it on the gear.

I do as he says, only twenty times cheesier so that he knows it's fake. I'm wearing a freaking dress, and it's not even going to be taken off of me! How unfair is that! Totally unfair, if you were wondering.

"So what have you been up to?" I ask, breaking the silence, as well as my thoughts. I turn towards him, and I'm not surprised to find his infamous smirk has reappeared. He's so cocky sometimes that it hurts. Physically hurts. I don't even want to know what he's been doing when he gets those sorts of looks. Ew. Okay, it's not so much 'ew' as JEALOUS, but he doesn't have to know that. I'm good at hiding that. At least, that's what I tell myself. Yeah, that's it! I'm good at it.

"Oh, you know." He grins, shrugging his shoulders. I do know sadly. Countless and faceless girls back to back. I used to want to be one of those girls. But I don't want that anymore. Because he doesn't even remember their name the next day, and I couldn't imagine that. I need him for as long as I can have him, in what ever way that is. One hour, one night.. it will never be enough for me. "Dating around."

Dating. That's a way to put it, I guess. If you're extremely optimistic and can consider a date in a girls bedroom a date. Cheap that way, I guess. Ew. Why do I lo-- like him anyway? Oh. That's right. He's freaking perfect.

"Had a second one yet?" I try my best to smile at him, but there's something in the bottom of my stomach that's terrified he's going to answer yes.

"Ha. Do you not know me at all, Mer?" He glances at me, and I just laugh, not allowing myself to answer. Sometimes there's things I just don't want to admit. " I don't think you have to worry about that." He chuckles, and although he says it for the entirely wrong reason than what I wish he meant, I feel better.

"Good to know. " I roll my eyes before letting them fall to my folded hands in my lap. What the HELL am I doing in this dress? He will never see me as more than the girl next door. The little girl at that. I'm only ONE year younger than him! I mean really! It's not like he babysat me. Well okay, that one time, he did, sort of, but I totally kicked his ass the entire time in pool, so he doesn't get to say he was babysitting. Clearly my parents were on some good pills that day.

"Here goes nothing." He squeezed my hand, and it wasn't until then that I realized we'd arrived at the banquet hall. That was fast. Then again, it was Mark driving, so that's not exactly a surprise. I turn to my right to find Izzie and Alex already out of his car waiting for us, holding hands! Aw! How CUTE!

"Hey Mark?" I ask, grinning as I notice Alex's bootineer, which was clearly planned. "How did you know what color my dress was?"

"Sweetheart, your HAIR is pink." He laughs at me, and despite my best efforts, I am sure I blushed. Ass!

"Right." I nod quickly, pulling my hand from his quickly as I opened the door.

"Ank!" He grins, shaking his head. "I will be doing that, my dear. I am your date, after all. He winks before jumping out of his side and rushing mine. How cute can he be. I mean really. I mean. Loser. Yeah. That's it. Before I can protest, and by protest, I mean fake protest, he is at my door , extending his arm to help me down. Honestly, it's a little weird him being so.. nice. He's always so sarcastic.

"Well thank you." I laugh as I take his arm as he begin to walk towards the entrance. Izzie and Alex are close behind, and something about that exact moment felt so right that it scared me. Why does Mark have to be such a whore?


	3. Chapter 3

**And I could tell you  
His favorite color's green  
He loves to argue  
Born on the seventeenth  
His sister's beautiful  
He has his father's eyes  
And if you ask me if I love him..  
I'd lie **

_It was the last Sunday dinner before Mark left for college. Meredith hadn't wanted to come. She'd wanted to sit in her room and cry, but Mark wouldn't hear it. If he was going to have to sit through his family's crazy dinner, then so was she. It was only fair since she'd been there at every other Sunday dinner for as long as either could remember. Everyone was already seated, and even though no one was saying it, all anyone was thinking was that they didn't know the next time they were all going to be together like this. Except for Mark, maybe, he was too excited about college to be sad about leaving. Yet, anyway. He was leaving after breakfast the next morning. A breakfast that she'd be alone with him in a public place. Mostly because neither of them could cook to save their lives. But a part of her figured that he wanted to limit the chances of her crying to an absolutely bare minimum, and he knew better than anyone that she did NOT cry in public, under any circumstances._

"I'm so glad you could make it, dear. Marcus told us that you weren't feeling well." Tammy spoke softly to Meredith, refusing to cry before dinner officially began. Meredith smiled back at her, feeling the same way. She was glad she went, she'd hate herself if she didn't,and it wasn't like she was going to have to say goodbye to him yet. She was going to miss his family so much. They hadn't talked about post college Mark dinners. She didn't know if she was still going to be invited, but she hoped so. She'd never had to plan a Sunday before. It scared her.

"Yeah. I'm feeling a little better now." She lied. She couldn't flat out admit that the thought of him leaving made her feel bed-ridden. Not to them, and especially not to him.

"Mom." Mark sighed as he watched tears fill his mothers eyes. They'd been "watering" all day, and it made him feel so bad. Going off to college was normal. It was expected. It wasn't like he was going on some last minute road trip for a year. And it wasn't like he wasn't going to come back to visit them all the time. He loved his family, even if they were entirely crazy and irrational. And Meredith. He didn't know how he was going to survive even two days without her. Much less, weeks at a time. He didn't tell her that though. It would only make it more concrete, making it harder for him to leave. He had to leave. He was certain that it wasn't even remotely healthy that he depended on her as much as he did. Sometimes it seemed like she felt the same way, but sometimes he didn't feel like he knew her at all. She'd get these far off looks sometimes, and it puzzled him. He'd begged her to tell him what she was thinking, but she'd refused. He hated secrets, especially secrets between them. There weren't suppose to be any secrets between them. They'd made a pact saying so.

"I'm sorry, baby." She sniffled, raising her head towards the ceiling, silently begging the tears to soak back into her eyes.

"Why is everyone crying again?" Megan, Mark's sister, cracked a smile to ease the tension. She was five years older than him. She'd been in his seat before, and she knew that everyone crying wasn't helping him at all. She smiled at him, and felt better when he sent her a grateful one in return.  
_  
"Megan." Thomas spoke sternly to his daughter, giving her a disapproving gaze. He knew what she was trying to do, but it only made Tammy want to cry more, and he really hated seeing his wife cry. He couldn't believe his only son was going off to college. He was so proud of Mark, but he couldn't say that with Tammy around. She'd glare at him and give him the silent treatment for days, and he'd learned a long time ago that silent treatments affected other areas of his life too, areas that he did not appreciate being disturbed._

"Sorry." Megan mumbled, fighting not to roll her eyes at her parents. Her mother was so dramatic sometimes. Was she the only one that saw how impossible it'd be for Mark to stay away? Meredith was still next door. It was next year they should be mourning. She couldn't say that though, because apparently Mark and Meredith were still in denial that we were anything more than the Mark and Meredith they were when they in Middle School. Blind, that's what they were. Or in denial. Or REALLY great actors. Maybe they had noticed. Maybe they just didn't want Mom already planning their wedding, she thought with a small grin. Maybe she'd ask Meredith. It's not like anything would really change, Meredith had always been a part of the family, and as much as they try to say otherwise, they had NEVER been very much like brother and sister. She saw them kiss once when they were younger. Siblings. Yeah right. Of course, they didn't know she saw them. But hello. They were in her backyard! It's not like they were hiding. Meredith was pretty aggressive for a five year old, she thought with a smile. Got her first kiss before even she did. Which is why she kissed Chad Michaels the next Monday at school. For the record, kissing with braces is just not fun. Really. Why anyone does it was beyond her. Given she was totally clumsy and definitely did not have the confidence that Meredith seemed to have. She'd like to say she taught Meredith well in life, but it was probably the other way around. Meredith was definitely more self sufficient than she was at that age than she cared to admit.

"So." Meredith fidgeted around in her chair, trying to rid herself of the nerves she was feeling. Megan had been giving her weird looks the entire time, and for the life of her, she couldn't figure out why. But if she knew Megan as well as she thought she did, she would know pretty soon. Megan was never let's beat around the bush kind of person.

"Yeah.." Mark tried to wind the conversation, but in that moment, he could not think of a word to say. He knew he should want to talk to his family, but all he could think about was hanging out with Meredith. He'd spent all summer with her, practically every day, and yet he still felt like there was so much they needed to do before he left. He didn't know if it was normal to feel that way, but he'd decided it was best not to find out. Sticking with routine was safe. Besides he was leaving in the morning, and it didn't really matter what kind of strange feelings he was having today, because tomorrow she would not be in walking distance from him. He knew himself better than believe he was good enough for her. He wasn't.

The rest of dinner was as silent and uncomfortable as the beginning, and Meredith had never been so relieved when everyone was done so she could offer to do dishes. Usually, she'd follow Mark back to his room, but tonight she needed to distract herself, and she would do that by the dishes. "I got them." She smiled softly at the older woman before taking them from her hands. She could tell that she wanted to fight her on it, but was thankful that she didn't as she handed them over, taking her seat again.

"I'll help you!" Megan chimed in, thankful that she was going to have a chance to talk to Meredith after all. It was a sign. A sign that she was suppose to ask. She watched as Meredith simply nodded her head before walking into the kitchen. She quickly grabbed the rest of the dishes from the center of the table before following her into the kitchen.  
_  
"Hey." She smiled softly at the sight of Meredith scrubbing rather hard on the dishes. It was really very unnecessary to scrub that hard, but she didn't have the heart to tell her that, not yet._

"Hey. Thanks for the help." Meredith smiled gratefully at her before returning her attention to the nearly sparkling plate, this time much gentler now that she had an audience.

"No problem." Megan shrugged as she rolled up her sleeves, taking a stand beside Meredith, gently taking the plate from her before rinsing it and sitting it down to dry. "Can you believe he's already leaving?" She'd expected to glide into the subject in a much smoother way, but she couldn't help it. She didn't really have anything else to say to her.

"I know. It's going to be so different around here without him." Meredith frowned, her strokes on the next plate much slower, almost a snail pace, as she thought about what her life was going to be like.

"I remember when I went away for college." Megan laughed to herself as the image of her family in her rear view mirror floated through her mind. "One of the most exciting days of my life... until I actually got to college." She laughed a little louder as her family was replaced by the memory of the two MOST annoying roommates she'd ever had. She'd gotten a new placement a week into school. She'd hated them.

Meredith wasn't sure what to say, so she simply smiled at her as she continued to wash the dishes. She really didn't want to think about Mark leaving at all, but less actually TALK about it. That was just cruel.

"He'll come back a lot, you know?" Meredith's head quickly shot up as the words entered her thought process. She wanted to question it, but it was clear that Megan wasn't finished. "For you. He counts on you too much not to. I don't think you should worry so much, hun." Megan smiled softly at her, feeling the urge to hug her, but Meredith had never been the kind of person that welcomed hugs that weren't absolutely necessary.

"I... " Meredith began, but quickly realized she didn't really know what to say to that. "I hope so." She finally managed to whisper as she lowered her eyes back to the dishes, thankful that she was almost to the pots and pans, which would require a lot more concentration.

"What is going on with you two, anyway?" Megan asked, trying her best to play it off smoothly, but as Meredith completely stopped washing the dish, she realized that she failed.

"What do you mean?" Her cheeks flushed as she tried to remember if she'd slipped during dinner. A glance too long, a touch too soft, but she was certain she'd been extra careful. Her emotions were on high as it was.

"You two just seemed... different.. tonight." She sent her a questioning glance and was disappointed to find that it seemed as though that they really were just in denial. She fought the urge to roll her eyes as Meredith shrugged her shoulders.

"Same as always." Meredith responded, and it was then that Megan got it. It wasn't that they were in denial. Her stupid brother was in denial. It was now clear to her that Meredith was well aware of how she felt. Megan couldn't help but to feel pity for her. She'd heard about her brother's reputation. It _wasn't really a surprise that Meredith hadn't said anything._

"I know this isn't really my business, Meredith.." She bit her bottom lip softly as she eyed the drying dishes. Meredith was actually quite impressive at washing dishes. She really didn't want to have to say it, but it was clear to her that she would have to. "But if he doesn't see that you're in love with him, then he's an idiot." She smiled softly at Meredith's shocked and baffled expression. She nodded her head as she dried her hands on a dish towel before patting Meredith's shoulder.

"Wait.. WHAT!" Meredith finally got out, but it was too late. Megan had already left the room. "I am NOT in-"

"Are you talking to yourself, Mer?" Mark's laughter filled the room, causing Meredith to jump as she turned around.

"How long have you been standing there?" Meredith's cheeks reddened as she eyed him.

"I just heard you talking and I knew everyone was in the living room." Mark grinned as he walked towards her. "Why? Were you talking about me?" He laughed, crossing his arms as he leaned against the counter.

"Oh get over yourself, loser." She rolled her eyes, finally turning off the running water.

"Can't do that. Not when you're talking to yourself about how much your going to miss me." He laughed, patting the top of her head playfully, knowing that it'd make her fume.

"Oh. You mean how much I'm going to love actually getting some sleep because you won't be calling me every time you THINK you see a spider."

"Oh. There was TOTALLY a spider that night, Mer! And You know it!" He gasped, hating himself that he had no better defense for sounding like a girl. It was a freaking huge spider! What was he suppose to do? Let it bite him and die? No!

"If you say so.." She grinned as she reached past him to grab the dish towel to dry her hands."All I remember is being woken up every FIVE minutes!"

"A lot of good that did me." He pouted, remembering how she told him to grow up and go back to sleep, and don't call back, once it was five AM and she had to get up in thirty minutes.

"You love me." She shrugged her shoulders with a grin before turning to leave the room. She was surprised when she felt his hand latch onto her wrist, pulling her back to him softly. She eyes his hand for a second, hoping that he wouldn't feel the increase in her pulse before she looked into his eyes. "What are you doing?" She managed a half laugh as she raised an eyebrow in speculation.

"Mer?" His voice was soft and she had to struggle to hear him, but she nodded anyway. She loved the way her name rolled off his tongue. "I.." She watched as he struggled to find the words. Mark had never been one to search for words to say. He was very quick witted and kept her on her toes. It was unusual to see him like this, and she really couldn't remember the last time she had, if ever.

"You know I do, right?" He finally to get out, and she truly didn't know how to respond. She wanted to _believe it was the way she loved him, but she was afraid she was wrong. She fought the urge to jump into his arms and kiss him crazily, which was very hard to do, and instead she just smiled at him softly._

"I know." She whispered, falling into his open arms for a hug. The hug lasted longer than theres usually did, and even though she knew she was probably making him uncomfortable, she couldn't bring herself to let go. He was leaving her. The one person who had never left her before was leaving. She just wanted to hold on to him for as long as she could, even if she never would be more than the girl next door. 


	4. Chapter 4

**He looks around the room  
Innocently overlooks the truth  
Shouldn't a light go on  
Doesn't he know that I've had him memorized for so long  
He sees everything in black and white  
Never let nobody see him cry  
I don't let nobody see me wishing he was mine **

The room was scarcely littered with dim lights, just enough to see two feet in front of you, and Meredith was thankful. She knew a lot of people would want to talk to Mark, but she couldn't stop the feeling of wanting him all to herself.

"Smile Meredith." Izzie whispered into her ear with a smile of her own on her face.

"I am." Meredith defended herself quickly, but she probably wasn't. She still couldn't figure out how he'd talked her into coming. Well, okay. It wasn't really talking into as much as being told. But who was she to argue. If everyone assumed they were together, that really wasn't her fault. Although,she doubted any of the girls in the room thought they were. Most of them knew Mark, therefore nothing that he'd never had a real girlfriend in his life. She didn't see that changing in college. She was willing to pretend though.

Meredith watched as Mark and Alex went to get drinks as her and Izzie sat down at a table in the far corner. "You should be freaking glowing, Mer. You know how many girls in this room would kill to be you?" Izzie laughed as she plastered on an even bigger smile as she glanced around the room, waving to several people who were waving at her. She's totally going to win Queen, Meredith thought.

"Almost as many as would kill to be you, I am guessing." She smiled as her eyes followed the two guys at the drink table that were currently being ambushed by a flock of girls. "Looks like you got some competition." Meredith laughed as a girl placed her hand on Alex's chest. It was clear, except to maybe her, that Alex was very uncomfortable, and Meredith felt sorry for him. "I'll be right back." She laughed as she stood up walking over there.

"Alex! Hey!" She smiled as if it was the first time she'd seen him all night, opening her arms wide for a hug. He glanced at her thankfully quickly before excusing himself from the girl.

"Did I mention that you rock?" He whispered into her ear with a laugh as he hugged her.

"Not today." She grinned, pulling away once the girl had walked away with a gloom look on her face.

"You know that she's my date, right?" Mark interrupted with a smile as he handed Meredith a glass of punch.

"For now." Alex winked at both of them before walking back to Izzie.

"Wow Mer, I didn't know you had a thing for Karev. Does Izzie know?" Mark asked, and for a moment Meredith was too shocked to respond. She eyed him for a moment to wait for the laugh, but it never came.

"Are you serious?" She blinked her eyes several times before turning to look at the other couple at the table.

"Just saying what I see." Mark shrugged his shoulders and Meredith was too angry to say anything. She, instead, walked back to the table. "Way to be an ass." She whispered when she was far enough away from him that he couldn't hear her.

"What's wrong?" Izzie asked as Meredith sat down at the table in a huff, turning around to send dagger glares at Mark.

"He's an IDIOT." Meredith rolled her eyes before downing half the contents of the cup. Idiot Idiot Idiot! She wanted to scream, but thought better of it since she was in public after all. "He thinks I have a thing for Alex! Alex!" Meredith grumbled as she shook her head. How could he be so freaking stupid? "No offense, Alex." She added, a little late, with a smile.

"No harm." He laughed as he looked at Izzie, who seemed to be staring off into outer space in thought.

"Well maybe you should make him jealous then." Izzie grinned as she looked between her best friend and her date, each of them looking very confused.

"Huh?" They both said at the same time. Clearly they were not on the same wavelength as she was.

"If he thinks you like Alex, and he's being an ass, that's a good thing, Mer! It means he's jealous!" She continued to explain her thought with a lot more enthusiasm than even Meredith expected.

"He's not jealous, he's just being an ass." Meredith muttered, rolling her eyes. She was surprised when Alex shook his head.

"Oh no. He was definitely jealous, Mer." Alex laughed as he recalled Mark's interruption. "Guys don't interrupt innocent conversation like that unless it bothers them. Especially not Mark."

"Told you." Izzie grinned triumphantly as she leaned onto the table. "So if you and Alex bug him, you should keep it up."

"What? Wait. Izzie. That's crazy. Alex is your date. That's crazy." Meredith shook her head. Izzie was her best friend, but sometimes that girl had the most insane ideas!

"It's not like you're going home with him, Mer. It's just innocent.. a game, even." Izzie turned to Alex who seemed to think it was just as bad of an idea as Meredith did.

"I don't know, babe." Alex countered, glancing to Meredith for help, but she was too busy looking back at Mark to help him.

"Please. For me." She batted her eyelashes playfully at him until he rolled his eyes.

"Fine." He mumbled, it wasn't like he had to actually do anything different. Meredith was very flirty anyway. It wouldn't really be anything different than they usually did.

"What?" Meredith's head snapped back to the conversation only to find Izzie standing up and walking away. "Where is she going?" Meredith bit her lip, afraid of what she had silently agreed to by ignoring.

"No idea." Alex shook his head as he watched her go before turning back to Meredith. "So we're going to have some fun, right Mer?" He laughed as he slid onto Izzie's seat next to Meredith.

A smile broke onto Meredith's face as she looked at Alex. "Let's dance." She grinned as she jumped up, grabbing onto Alex's hand before practically sprinting onto the dance floor.


	5. Chapter 5

**I could tell you  
His favorite color's green  
He loves to argue  
Born on the seventeenth  
His sister's beautiful  
He has his father's eyes  
And if you ask me if I love him..  
I'd lie **

"Wow. I never knew you had it this bad for Mark, Mer." Alex laughed as he wrapped an arm around Meredith's waist to keep her close.

"Shut up." She blushed as her arms lassoed his neck. It was a slow song, and even though she'd danced with Alex before at parties, this seemed so much stranger. He was her friend's date! She really felt pretty pathetic.

"Well if it makes you feel better, I'm pretty sure he's plotting my death right now." Alex laughed as he pulled her a little closer to him, trying his best to ignore the glares he was getting from across the room.

Meredith tried her best not to look, but she could tell by the way Alex was shuffling around that Mark was making him uncomfortable. She didn't know whether to be happy or angry about that. If he wanted to dance with her, all he had to do was ask! Boys and their stupid dumb pride. Finally she glanced over at Mark, only catching his glare for a moment before it turned into a smile, simply waving at her. She returned the fake smile before returning her attention to Alex. If he had a problem with it, he could stop it at any time. She wasn't going to. She wasn't doing anything wrong! That and the fact that he was totally chatting up some bleach blonde hair girl over there! Ass. He is so not allowed to make her feel bad for dancing with Alex.

"You don't have to do this, ya know? Even if it does bother him, he'll never admit it." Meredith frowned, laying her head on his chest sadly.

"I don't think you give him enough credit." Alex whispered quickly before taking a step backwards. Meredith lifted her head to find that Mark was now standing right beside them.

"Can I cut in?" It was by far the fakest smile she'd ever seen Mark give someone, and even though the rebel in her wanted to say no, she knew not to push her luck. She simply smiled at Alex before releasing her hold on him and turning to Mark.

"Thought you didn't like him." Mark huffed, instantly pulling her closer to him than she ever was with Alex.

"It was just a dance." Meredith rolled her eyes as she laid her head onto his chest. He was much taller than her, it was no use to strain her neck to look at him.

"A very close dance." He pointed out stubbornly, resting his chin on the top of her head.

"Oh! Okay." She was getting annoyed now as she pulled away from him. "You mean a close dance like we are dancing, Mark? Is that what you mean?" She challenged him to say something, but of course, he stayed silent. Like he always does when things like this come up.

"We're different!" He growled as he completely stopped dancing.

"How? We're friends too!" Meredith pointed out, angry that he'd forced her to go to this stupid dance, and he was single handedly ruining it.

"It's different, and you know it!" He growled, releasing all grasps he had on her.

"Whatever Mark. I'm going to the bathroom." She started to walk away but was stopped by his voice.

"Mer!" it was much softer this time considering he nearly had to yell over the music. She turned around to face him, but she did not step back towards him. She wasn't willing to physically walk back into an argument with him. Not if she could help it. "I'm sorry. Please dance with me." He offered a faint smile, and just like that, all the anger she'd been feeling melted away. It wasn't fair that he could do that!

"You're lucky you're my ride home." She mumbled as she fell back into his chest, wrapping her arms tightly around his waist.

**He stands there, then walks away  
My God, if I could only say  
I'm holding every breath for you **

All of the drama was forgotten by the time they'd left the prom. Mark had nearly carried her in the after party, but she relaxed once he handed her her very own bottle of tequila. If he wasn't her best friend, she would have been wary of a guy giving her a bottle of tequila, but she didn't think twice before consuming as much as she could in one gulp and pulling Izzie to the middle of the room to dance. Izzie had been crowned Prom Queen, as everyone expected, and although she had said she didn't care if she won or not, Meredith could tell her she was excited.

"Let's dance, Iz." Meredith giggled as she threw her hands in the air, letting out a tiny shrill of excitement as the alcohol traveled quickly through her system. She used to be able to drink anyone under the table, but it'd been awhile since she'd drank anything, and it was refreshing to feel it having its effect so quickly.

"I thought you hated prom, Mer." Izzie laughed, trying to yell over the blasting music so that her friend could hear her.

"I do, but I LOVE tequila." Meredith giggled as she took another sip of the bottle that she was carrying around.

"You're totally going to regret that in the morning." Izzie laughed as she felt an arm wrap around her waist from behind. She knew instantly that it was Alex, mostly because it was the way he'd been holding her the entire night.

Meredith was about to comment on how the two of them had been sickeningly inseparable the entire night, but she was distracted by Mark's hands on her hips. She grinned at Izzie before she turned around to face Mark. "What took you so long, take a nap?" She giggled as she took another sip. A part of her wanted to remember this night forever. The way he was looking at her and holding her, but another part wanted to forget. She didn't want to believe it was more than just dances. She couldn't let herself do that, so she was drinking. She was drinking for courage, but even more so to forget. If she remembered in the morning how he was looking at her right then, she would think that just maybe he wanted her too.

"I was watching you." He leaned in close to whisper in her ear, and even though she was starting to sweat from dancing so much, her entire body flared with goosebumps. She bit on her lower lip as he gently pulled her closer to him. She could feel the muscles in his stomach contract as he moved, and it was all she could do not to melt to the floor.

"Done watching yet?" She responded as she pulled her head back far enough to look into his eyes. She watched nervously as he licked his bottom lip. Her hopes shattered before she could even manage to lick her own as he stepped away from her, shaking his head.

"We should get you home, Mer." He nodded his head as he grabbed onto her hand, pulling her off the dance floor without even giving her a chance to say goodbye to Izzie.

She eyed him the entire ride home, waiting for him to explain what the hell had just happened. He'd even made her leave the tequila! She definitely could have used that bottle right about then. He ignored her, focusing solely on the road ahead of him until they were in her driveway.

Neither of them made a move to get out, even after he turned off the car. She was starting to wonder if she was just supposed to leave, but as soon as she went to reach for the handle, he turned towards her. "Mer.."

Meredith's hands fell back onto her lap, grasping onto each other desperately as he continued to search for words that hadn't even begun to form on his tongue. "I thought we were having fun." She whispered, refusing to shed a tear over something like an abruptly ended dance.

"We were." He nodded, blinking his eyes at her several times before he reached out to grab her hands into his. "All these guys were staring you, and I just.. It's always just been the two of us. Does that many any sense?" He tried to explain, but he could tell by her confused features that he wasn't doing a very good job of it.

"You dragged me out of a party because guys were looking at me?" She asked slowly, trying to make sure that she understood.

"Last year, at my Prom, I spent the entire night thinking that it would have been so much funner if you were there with me. My buddy. You know? So, when you told me you didn't want to go to prom, I wanted you to have the experience that I wanted. So I made you go, but I wasn't.. I wasn't expecting everyone to be watching your every move."

"Woah. Woah. Woah. Slow down Mark." Meredith laughed, shaking her head. "I think you're exaggerating. I don't think everyone was watching me. Do you know how many evil looks I got because I was with you? You're _Mark Sloan. _I'm just me. And that's okay because that's the way it's always been. What did you think? I was going to leave you there alone and leave with some guy?" Her eyes narrowed on him as she continued. "I wouldn't do that. If you didn't notice, I wasn't paying attention to anyone. There's no one else that I would have gone to Prom with, Mark. If you don't know that, you don't know me. That's a problem."

"You mean other people asked you?" He blinked and although he didn't know why, his hands made themselves into a fist as he pictured those other guys trying to ask her out.

"Did you really just ask me that?" She glared at him, taking every ounce of strength she had not to slap him. "Wow. Good to know that you think I'm SO disgusting that I couldn't get a date if I wanted one."

"That's not what I meant and you know it!" He recoiled as his his hands tightened around her wrist. "You don't exactly go around inviting the world into your life, Meredith. In fact, you go around as if you could care less if a majority died in their sleep tonight, so forgive me for thinking that any of them had balls enough to ask you!"

"Screw YOU!" She yelled, yanking her hands away his, not caring a bit when she slapped his cheek with as much force as she could muster. "I do not go around with Screw The World on my forehead. I thought you of ALL people would know that. But clearly you're just like every other jackass out there that only thinks with their mini joe in their pants!" She slapped him again before opening the passenger door and jumping out.

"Mer! Wait!" He followed suit, slamming his door shut, something he really **hated **doing. "If you would just listen for one effing second, then you wouldn't get so damn mad all the time." By the time he reached her, she was leaning against her front door, nearly quivering from unshed tears building in her eyes. If he moved any closer to her, he could feel the fabric of her dress with his hands by his side. "Don't you get that I have never cared if other guys noticed the girl I was with. Don't you get that it drove me crazy. I don't know how to handle it because it's always been just the two of us. No other girls or guys, and I don't get how you can pretend they aren't there!"

"Because I don't care who else is there when I'm with you." She whispered, the tears finally escaping as she looked up at him. She wanted to cross her arms against her chest, but she couldn't without brushing against his chest, and she really had no self control left. He'd drained all of it from her.

"I'm sorry, Mer. I'm sorry I ruined your prom night. I.. I never wanted to make you cry." He frowned as he grabbed onto her hands. " I am so sorry."

She nodded as she locked his stare, bringing their hands up to her sight. "You always are." She sniffled before releasing his hands to wipe her eyes. She was thankful that her parents were sleeping, because she didn't think she could face them yet.

"I don't deserve you." He smiled sadly as he cupped her chin, shaking his head slowly. "Not one bit."

"That's true." She laughed before opening her arms for a hug that he accepted immediately. They stood there in the embrace for several minutes before Meredith eventually pulled away. "I should go inside." She nodded, mostly to herself as glanced back at the door behind her.

"You know you're my best friend, right Mer?"

"I'm your only friend, loser." She laughed before pushing herself onto the toes of her heels to kiss his cheek. "Goodnight."

"Night Pinkie." He smirked as a gasp left her lips.

"You did NOT just call me that." She glared at him for a mere moment before breaking into a laugh. "Loser." She winked at him before opening the door behind her and leaving him outside alone. She sighed as she leaned against the inside of her door. She could have sworn he was going to kiss her, but once again, she had been wrong. She was still just his buddy. She had to accept that.


	6. Chapter 6

Hi everyone! I just wanted to thank all of you for the support for this story! It means a lot to me! There is one more chapter after this, just so you all know!

Enjoy!! And please let me know what you think!

**Warning: suss!**

**He'd never tell you, but he can play guitar  
I think he can see through everything but my heart  
First thought when I wake up is  
My God, he's beautiful  
So I put on my make-up and pray for a miracle **

The sun's rays creped beneath Meredith's eyelids entirely too early for her taste as You and Me by Lifehouse invaded her ears. She could already tell that it was definitely a good thing that she'd taken that aspirin before she fell asleep. She blindly fumbled around for her cellphone on her bedside table and froze when her arm landed on warm skin. "What the.." Her eyes shot open to find his smiling face laying between her and her phone. "Why are you calling me when you're in my bed?" She mumbled as she wiped at her eyes lazily, lifting herself onto one elbow. "Second thought. Why are you in my bed?"

"Thought I'd try something new. Gotta say. Pretty nice bed you have here, Mer." He laughed as he ended the call before plopping his head back into the pillow.

"Why are you in it?" She repeated it, trying to remember the specifics of last night. She was positive that she had closed the door on him, taken aspirin, showered, and went to bed. She hadn't even stayed up to wait to see Izzie was coming over. Clearly not, she reasoned as she once again eyed her visitor. At least he was fully clothed. She didn't know what she would have done if he had not been. She had crashed at his place tons of times, but this was her bed. Him shirtless in her bed would be a freaking overload beyond explanation. She would not be responsible for her thoughts or her actions. He came to her!

"We should go get breakfast." He avoided the question again, finally sitting up to look around the room. "Your room has changed a lot since I've been in here." He frowned, standing up to get a closer look of the pictures on the corners of her mirror. He felt relieved that some of them still contained him in them. It'd only been a year, and sometimes he felt like he didn't know her at all anymore.

"You were in here a few weeks ago, crazy." She laughed until she saw his saddened expression in the mirror. "Are you okay, Mark?"

"Huh? Yeah." He turned around to offer her a quick glance and a smile before turning back towards the mirror to grab a picture he'd been eying. It was a picture of him. He clearly did not know she was taking the picture, or maybe he didn't want it to be taken, because his head was down, focused solely on the guitar in his lap. He smiled as he remembered how proud he'd been when he'd gotten it and learned how to play Wonderwall by Oasis on it. She was the only person he'd ever played in front of. He didn't even take the guitar to college. The more he looked at it, the more he realized when exactly it was taken.

"_Mer! Stop! Put that damn camera away!" He ordered her as he sat down on her bed. She'd been unable to put that thing down since she bought it the week before. It was just a one time use camera, it'd cost him only 4 and some change, but she held onto it like it was sprinkled with diamonds._

_"Aw. But you're so cute when you're concentrating." She giggled as she took another snapshot._

_"Guitars don't make guys look cute, Mer." Mark rolled his eyes at her as he continued to strum along with the beat in his head._

_"Who said anything about the guitar?" She grinned, snapping another shot before finally setting the camera down on her dresser. "Fine. No more pictures. "_

_"Thank you." He finally lifted his head as he sat aside the guitar. "In three days, I will be officially a high school graduate! Can you believe it?"_

_"That explains the gray hair, I guess." Meredith shrugged her shoulders, biting her lip to reject the growing smile._

_"MEREDITH GREY!" He gasped, his hands flying to his head, running his fingers through his hair._

_"Just saying." She laughed, quickly sliding away from him as he reached his arms out to her to tickle her sides. "NO! PLEASE NO!" She squealed, instinctively laying back on the bed to get away from him. She realized quickly that it was as bad idea as her breath hitched in her throat as he leaned over her, not once giving her a break from the tickling._

_"Take it back!" He demanded as she squirmed against him._

_"No!" She refused, slapping his chest and arms repeatedly to try to get him to loosen his hold, with little to no success._

_"I'm not stopping." He shifted as his hands fell underneath her shirt just enough to reach the spot he knew would make her give in._

_"OK! OK! I'M SORRY! YOU AREN'T OLD! YOU AREN'T OLD!" She surrendered grudgingly, thankful when his hands rested peacefully on her hips. She took a deep breath to gather herself as she met his gaze. "What?" She asked softly. He was looking at her differently than he usually did, and it gave her chills._

_"Nothing." He shook his head, slowly rolling over onto his back so that he wasn't touching her anymore. "Do you remember when we made our pact to never have any secrets?"_

_"You mean when you wouldn't tell me what you got me for Christmas, and I punched you in the stomach and made you promise not to keep secrets?" She laughed as she recalled Mark agreeing only because she had her fist ready for another punch._

_"Yeah." He blushed, realizing he'd fuzzied out some of the details of how the pact came to be._

_"How could I forget? You bought me the best gift EVER!" She grinned, glancing over at her dresser where the porcelain doll still sat. It was the only doll she didn't let her mother give away when she turned thirteen. "Why?" She asked, her curiosity beating out her reminiscent thoughts._

_"We should make another pact." He spoke with little room for argument, even though she had no intention to argue. _

"Earth to Mark!" Her words registered to him about the time he felt her hand on his arm.

"Sorry." He mumbled, his face flushed as he wondered how long she'd been trying to get his attention. "Ready to go?"

Just as Meredith was about to request ten minutes to get ready, her cell phone started ringing again, this time Dig by Incubus filled her room, accompanied with loud vibrations against the table it was on.

"Izzie." She acknowledged as she made her way back to the bed to grab her phone.

"Hey Iz." She smiled into the phone, excited to hear about her night. Hopefully it had gone much better than her own.

Mark watched as Meredith's cheeks burned bright red at whatever Izzie said to her. He bit back his laugh as she nervously pushed her hair behind her ear. "Um. Now?" She asked, glancing quickly at him, seeming to apologize for whatever it was that she was suppose to do. He had a sinking feeling he was about to get left for a girl. "Yeah. Okay. See you in a bit, Iz." Meredith quickly ended the call, biting her lip as she stood up to face him.

"Let me guess." He gave his best supportive smile before she talk. "Izzie needs you. Now."

She nodded sadly as she wrapped her arms around his neck. "It'll just be like an hour. Tops!" She smiled as she felt his arms around her waist. "Promise." She grinned, quickly kissing his cheek before pulling away. "You have to go though. Really. She's going to be here any minute."

"What? I can't be present during super fun girl time?" He laughed, crossing his arms securely against his chest in false protest. Truly, he had no interest in hearing about how Izzie hooked up with her date, but he didn't want to leave Meredith either.

"Where do you come up with those things?" She laughed as she rolled her eyes at him. "And no. Now, see you in an hour!" She grinned as she pushed him out of her bedroom.

"Fine. See you in an hour, and don't forget in your gossip hour that my parents are expecting you at dinner tonight." He winked at her before finally walking on his own towards the stairwell.

"Not a chance." She smiled before shutting the door and going back to lay in her bed. She didn't know why he'd chosen to wake her up that way, but she couldn't deny the fact that she liked him being the first person she saw when she opened her eyes.

**Yes I could tell you  
His favorite color's green  
He loves to argue  
Oh, and it kills me  
His sister's beautiful  
He has his father's eyes  
And if you ask me if I love him..  
If you ask me if I love him..  
I'd lie **

Meredith was still reeling from Mark being in her bed when Izzie burst into her room without even a courtesy knock. It was clear that her night had gone much better than her own by the smile playing on her best friend's face. "Hey Iz." Meredith laughed, scooting over on the bed so that Izzie could sit down.

"Sorry I didn't call." Izzie blushed as she snuggled underneath the covers.

"Good night?" Meredith laughed as she noted that Izzie was still wearing Alex's shirt. Clearly Izzie had had a lot more fun than she had.

"Yes. And I take it you did too since I just saw Mark leaving." Izzie laughed before her eyes shot open. "Oh my god. I'm in your bed!" Izzie quickly jumped up.

"Relax, Iz. Mark didn't spend the night. Nothing happened." Meredith muttered, a little irritation of the fact showing through.

"Oh." Izzie frowned, once again sliding back onto the bed. "Then why was he here?"

"He wanted to get breakfast." Meredith shrugged her shoulders, knowing it was a weird reason, but she was being honest!

"He couldn't have called you?"

"Apparently not." Meredith couldn't help but to smile at the memory of him being there.

"So NOTHING happened after he dragged you out of the party all boyfriend style. He was all heated.. and.." Izzie always got irritated with the two of them. It was so obvious that they both were completely in love with each other, yet neither of them had seemed to figure it out! She'd told Meredith to just kiss him a thousand times, but she had yet to take her advice.

"Nothing. He told me I was his best friend." She rolled her eyes as she remembered how ridiculously close he had been to her.

"He's an idiot."

"It's not his fault he doesn't like me, Iz." Meredith frowned as she covered her face with a pillow.

"Oh Whatever! He went all psycho- jealous on you like seven times last night, Mer! Friends don't do that. "

"Mark does."

"You're impossible." Izzie rolled her eyes again at Meredith before changing the subject. "Anyway! Mark is not the reason I came over."

"I figured." Meredith smiled as Izzie's face was taken over with a dreamy expression.

"You know how you obsess and obsess over things in your head over and over before they happen to the point where it seems like by the time it actually happens, it has no chance of coming close to what you dreamed?"

Meredith frowned, she knew exactly what that was like, but that didn't quite go with the look of pure joy on Izzie's face. "It wasn't good?"

"Oh no. It was even better. I was just saying."

"You're impossible, Iz!" Meredith giggled as she slid beneath the covers. "So spill. Why are you here so early?"

"Can't a girl just want to hang with her best friend?"

"Not this time of morning."

"Right. Good thing Mark woke you up first."

"Iz!"

"Fine! Fine!" Izzie laughed as she settled in to tell her story.

_She watched as Mark pulled Meredith from the dance floor, heading directly for the door. She could hear Meredith's protests, but as he handed off Meredith's tequila, she knew that they wouldn't be coming back. She smiled as she turned around to face Alex, wrapping her arms around his neck so that she could pull him close to talk into his ear. "You wanna get out of here?" She didn't pull away to see his face, but she felt him nod against her before his arms reached up to hers to grab onto her hands. She blushed as he stepped away for a moment to look into her eyes._

_"Are you sure?" He asked, and with a simple nod for an answer, he led her towards the door, their fingers intertwined as they navigated through the crowd._

_It was only a few minutes before they pulled up to his house. "You live here?" She asked, blinking in surprise. She didn't know what she was expecting, Alex had never hidden the fact that his family has money, but the place was a mansion! All of her insecurities came rushing forth as she mentally compared their lives. Alex was an only child and living in a house that had at least seven bedrooms, while she had three siblings and a single mother in a three bedroom ranch style house._

_"You okay, babe?" Alex asked her, and she could tell she had worried him._

_"Fine. Sorry." She gave her best smile as she continued to eye the house. Meredith's house was large, but it was nothing like Alex's. She felt so out of place. She knew her mother did the best she could, and she'd never been ashamed of her, but it didn't mean she didn't feel inadequate walking into Alex's house, even if he was holding her hand. She was thankful when he informed her that his parents were out of town for the weekend. She wasn't sure she could have handled running into them._

_She was relieved when they made it to his room, a wave of relief washed over her as she was surrounded by things that were just so incredibly Alex. Trophies were on display on a shelf than ran the length of the wall across from his bed. The room was clean, too clean even. She assumed they had a cleaning lady. Everything was set in the perfect angle for optimal viewing, and she couldn't help but be __in more awe of him that he took an interest in her, who was clearly so different._

_"It's nice." She grinned as she walked past the bed to sit on the bean bag in the far corner of his room, next to the window._

_"You wouldn't say that if you saw it this morning." He grinned, sitting on his knees in front of her._

_"You cleaned for me?" She awed at him, placing her hand across her chest._

_"Something like that." He laughed, running a hand across her cheek before it went into her hair, freeing it from the clip that held it together. "You're beautiful."He whispered, leaning in just enough to tease her lips with an airy kiss._

_Her hands trembled nervously as she pulled him closer to her using the back of his neck. "I'm already in your bedroom, Alex." She grinned, fighting the nerves that were building in her stomach._

_The kisses lasted for several minutes before he pulled away, once again looking into her eyes. "Do you want to get out of that dress?"_

_She blushed scarlet red at the question before he quickly fixed his statement. "I meant like.. pj's or something." She smiled as he blushed too._

_"I'd like that." She grinned, watching as he walked over to his dresser, quickly grabbing a pair of boxers and a t-shirt before walking back to her._

_"Here you go." He fumbled as he handed over the clothing before nodding to the joined bathroom. "You can change in there, if you want."_

_She smiled thankfully at the gesture before she stood up, her dress swishing as he helped her get her balance. She was thankful she wasn't wearing heels._

_"I could.." She nodded as she dropped the clothes behind her onto the bean bag. "But there's only one problem with that."_

_His voice came out raspy and a little higher than usual as he asked her what the problem was._

_"I can't unzip the dress myself." She whispered into his ear, even though he'd already told her his parents were gone._

_She slowly turned around, lifting her hair up so that he could undo the dress for her. Her stomach flipped as she felt his hands against her back, slowly torturing her as the zipper made its way down her back at a snail's pace. The dress simply fell off of her once it was fully unzipped and she grinned as she heard his breath hitch in his throat. "Thanks." She grinned, bending over, clad only in underwear, to retrieve the pair of clothing he'd given her. _

"I get the picture, Iz!"Meredith blushed as her friend recalled some very intimate details that she could have easily gone without ever knowing. Wasn't 'we had sex' enough? Really!

"Sorry." Izzie's cheeks burned with embarrassment as she dug herself further into the covers. She hadn't meant to get so detailed, but once she started, her mind refused to leave anything out.

"So you two are.." Meredith trailed off, hoping that Izzie would finish the statement.

"Together." Izzie beamed before a small squeal left her throat.

"Good for you, Iz." Meredith smiled at her friend, once again reminded how badly her night had gone. She was about to begin the hint that she needed to go meet Mark when her phone went off, indicating she had a text message. Flipping it open, she smiled as a picture of Mark flashed onto her phone's screen. Patience had never been a virtue Mark possessed.

**Leaving in 10. Be here if you want breakfast. **

"I'm sorry, Iz. I gotta go." Meredith fought the smile on her lips as she closed her phone. "You can hang here if you want, though. Feel free." Meredith jumped out of bed and grabbed a pair of clothes before rushing to the bathroom.

"Have fun." Izzie yelled quickly before the water rushed through the pipes to the shower.


	7. Chapter 7

**Hi everyone. This is the last chapter! Enjoy! Thank all of you so much for your feedback! It means a lot to me!**

Mark was already in his truck when Meredith made her way into his yard. She smiled as she climbed into the passenger side, quickly buckling her seat belt restraint as he roared out of the driveway.

"Had to use every single minute?" He smirked as he glanced at the clock on his stereo system. He'd been slightly worried that she wouldn't be able to get away from Izzie, but once again, she had proven him wrong. She always managed to show up.

"Of course." She grinned, pulling down the visor to block the early morning rays of light from invading her eyes more than absolutely necessary.  
"I was about to leave you, ya know." He laughed as he threw the car in reverse and pulled out of his driveway.

"Whatever. You'd never go eat alone." She watched out of the corner of her eye as he tried very hard to refute that, but she smiled in victory when he couldn't seem to do so.

"Who said I'd be alone?" He bit back, albeit it was momentarily too late to hold much ground.

"Like you have friends." She rolled her eyes, knowing that even if it was true, it was not possible to hurt the guy's ego. He was more than well aware of how many people, girls really, would flock to him before he could even remember, much less get out, their name. It was enough to nauseate her. No wonder the guy didn't believe in monogamy. Why should he?

"Fine. I wasn't going to leave. But I could have!" He grumbled, forcing himself to pay attention to the road. Not that a lot of attention was needed, it was a very straight road and it didn't have any hidden turns. He'd spent his whole life wishing to get away from this town. From the boring roads and unsurprising faces that never seemed to age. He still had that dream now, but it was a faltered plan now. He couldn't stay away for too long now that he was gone. Not so much the town as he couldn't stay away from her. They hadn't really talked about her plans after high school. It was a subject neither of them had the nerve to breach.

She'd told him when he went off for college that he could expect her with him the next year, but he wasn't sure what a year of independence had done for her. Would she want to be around him? He knew time was running out for her to decide though. He'd never had a problem asking anyone else what school they were going to, because it didn't really matter the answer. But her answer- it was huge. It was life- altering at the least.

"Mark?" She spoke softly not to frighten him once he went right past the dinner that she'd thought they were going to.

"Huh?.. Oh." He blushed, pulling far to the side of the road in order to make a U- Turn. He was once again thankful that traffic was practically non- existent. He could hear her laughing at him, but he chose to ignore it. "So you aren't going to eat me out of a paycheck, are you, Mer?"

She narrowed her eyes on him as they pulled into the diner's parking lot. "Well I wasn't planning on it. Until now." She wanted to comment that he didn't get paychecks, but she decided it was irrelevant. She guessed it wasn't very manly to say out of his allowance. If you could have an allowance that was unlimited.

"Good thing I have my credit card." He mumbled, fighting a grin, as he turned off the car.

"HEY!" She slapped his arm before jumping out of his truck.

"Aw you know I'm just kidding, Mer." He laughed, wrapping his arm easily around her waist to pull her against him. He smiled as she didn't struggle against him, instead just leaning further into him.

They made their way into the diner, and Meredith relished the feel of Mark's calloused fingers grabbed onto hers, pulling her through a maze of tables to their usual booth. It was the smallest booth in the building, and Meredith loved that she was as close to him as she could be without coming up with some bogus excuse as to why she was there. She didn't know why Mark liked it so much, it was almost too small for his food alone, much less the both of theirs. She didn't argue though. She could feel his muscular calves rub ever so gently against hers as they slid into their seats. She was thankful that the heart was a rather silent organ, or she would be doomed every time he touched her with how her heart raced. It wasn't long before the waitress showed up to get their drink orders. Meredith discovered a long time ago that anytime she was with Mark, they got quick service- quick and very attentive service. She was certain that the women never stayed away for longer than five minutes. Mark never seemed to notice. If he did, he had the decency not to comment to her about it.

"So, what's it going to be?" Mark asked after the waitress, a plump redhead with too many freckles lying solely on her nose, left them to decide.

"Waffles."She grinned, already imagining how delicious they would be with the maple syrup, lots of whipped cream, and of course her favorite addition, the two strawberries on top. Her mouth was watering at the idea. Even though she rarely got to eat both of the strawberries, Mark always managed to steal one, most of the time without her even noticing.

"We are boring. I'm talking tear-worthy boring, Mer. We get the same thing every single time." He grinned, resting his elbows on the table as he leaned towards her.

"I'm not boring. Just picky. There's a difference." She narrowed her eyes into a glare as she leaned back against her seat.

"Is that your excuse for your personal life too?" He winked at her, and she was certain that it was pure reflexes when her foot kicked him. She did not remember making a conscious effort to do so.

"My personal life is just fine, just like my waffles. Thank you very much. I thought you of all people would be glad that I don't date much, you know, since you have a freak out when guys even look at me."

She watched curiously as he puffed out his chest,a huffing sound escaping his lips. "I did not freak out."

"You so freaked out." She laughed, enjoying every moment of his discomfort.

"Fine. I might have freaked out a little. Temporary glitch." He shrugged his shoulders, refusing to rehash the anger that'd exploded the night before. He wouldn't let that happen again. He had no say in that department of her life. She didn't comment on his. He would do better. He had no choice. He was relieved when the waitress came back to get their food orders. He let Meredith order her waffles first before ordering his french toast with a side of cheesy hashbrowns.

"Alright, well, I have a question."

"I always have the answer." He chuckled

"What are your thoughts on getting an apartment instead of staying in a dorm?" She knew this was a touchy subject, but she was running out of time, and she didn't know when she was going to see him again before graduation, if she would.

"You want to live alone?" He raised his left eyebrow skeptically at her, taking a sip of his drink to quench his drying throat. College talk. He'd hoped they would talk about it, but it still made him nervous.

"I didn't say anything about living alone. I asked you your thoughts." She rolled her eyes, even though she was partially relieved that he didn't seem to see what she'd been implying.

"Well I don't suggest living alone, but I know a lot of people with apartments, it's not a terrible idea." He shrugged his shoulders before a grin lit up his face. "Besides, then I could crash on your couch whenever I wanted."

"Or.." She took a deep breath as she promised herself she wouldn't get upset by his answer, no matter what. A promise she knew she couldn't keep. "We could get an apartment together?"

"You want to get an apartment with me?"

"Yes. Or with Izzie. She will be there too. Maybe even Alex.." Meredith rambled nervously, almost positive she remembered Izzie rambling something about how she found out Alex was going there too on a scholarship.

"This mean you've chosen to not abandon me?" He tried to at least partially hide his excitement, but he was failing, and he couldn't bring himself to care. He wasn't even lingering on the fact that he would really hate for Alex to live with Meredith. If he was there, he could punch the guy every time he touched her. He liked the idea of that.

"Yes." She let out a sigh of relief at his excitement. She still wasn't completely sure on how he would respond. "P.S- it wouldn't have been abandoning. I would still have seen you."

"Yeah yeah, whatever." He rolled his eyes, forcing himself to not jump up and hug her. The waitress returned with the two plates and a big smile for just for Mark. Clearly she didn't notice that she was interrupting a big moment, because after she handed off their food, she lingered. "I'm sorry.." Mark managed to force a smile at the woman, trying not to be rude. "Was there something else?"

"Oh. No. Sorry." The waitress blushed before quickly scurrying away from the duo.

"Anyway!" Mark shook his head, putting the waitress out of mind to focus on the conversation. "Mer! I am so glad you're going to be with me!" He grinned as he looked up at her to find that the whipped cream had somehow traveled to make big spot on the tip of her nose.

"Yeah?"

"You thought I wouldn't be happy?" His stomach dropped as he realized the doubt that was etched into her face.

"I.. I wasn't sure. I didn't want to suffocate you." She frowned, glancing down at her hands buried into her lap.

"You're insane, Mer." He smiled, sliding out of his seat to sit next to her, even though there wasn't much room for him.

"I just didn't know." She pouted, still refusing to meet his gaze.

"Mer." His eyes sparkled as he lifted her chin with his hand, staring at her until she finally looked at him. "I would love to get an apartment with you, and whoever else you want to live with." His smile never faltered as he lifted his other hand to her face with the intention of wiping off the cream, but instead it rested on her cheek. "Don't you know how hard the last year has been without you?" His voice cracked, but he didn't try to fix it. It was the most honest the two of them had been, and he didn't want to be the one to ruin it.

Tears welled in Meredith's eyes as she felt the warmth of his fingers on her cheeks and heard the vulnerability in his voice. She knew if she was ever going to do something about her feelings, it was time. She forced a smile as she lifted her own hands, gently cupping his face in her hands before pulling his lips to hers. Her stomach knotted as a long-lasting moment passed and he didn't respond. She was just about to pull away when his hands tightened against her skin, pulling her closer to him. She eventually pulled away for air, and was embarrassed when Mark immediately started laughing.

"Don't laugh!" She blushed, turning her head in the other direction to look out the window at the empty parking lot.

"Aw! Mer. I wasn't laughing about the kiss. I was laughing because now we both have whipped cream on our noses." He grinned, turning her chin to face him again."See?"

"Oh." She blushed again. "I kissed you. I can't believe I did that."

"Want to do it again?"

"I.. well.. " Before she could answer, he was pulling her into another kiss that she didn't hesitate to return.

"The waffles are good." He grinned once they finally pulled away again.

"Told you."

**The End. **

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